Liverpool & South West Lancashire FHS - Forum

Hello,

I wonder if anyone from the Liverpool area has any links to a Bramhall family?

I am directly linked to William Bramhall, file cutter of Huyton born c 1806. He married Sarah Webster of Prescot (b1809/10) in 1828 at St Michael's, Huyton. From at least 1841 onwards he lived in Warrington and died there in 1873.

From census records there are quite a few Huyton born Bramhall file cutters all living in the Warrington area around the same time who could well be William's brothers or cousins. I can find a Huyton birth/christening for all these men but am unable to find one for William.

From the igi's and bishop's transcripts I can find a family to parents Thomas and Ann Bramhall with several children and a gap where my William would fit in but no entry for William. (He called his first 2 children Thomas and Ann). Unfortunately the parish records microfiche is lost at Huyton Records, the bishop's transcripts film for St Michaels's has 1806 missing and the church records (checked by a friend) don't show William.

Can anybody help with finding my William?

Fingers crossed!
Donna

Hello Donna,
It might be worthwhile widening the year span in searching church records.
I see from the 1851 and 1861 censuses that his birth years are given as 1808 and 1809. The 1806 year only fits if his age at death was correct.

I see from the 1871 census that he was by then a widower in lodgings. He's not with any family members and his given age of 65 would give you 1806. If he died there it's possible the census age was used as a 'marker' when he died in 1873.

In the 1841, where the family is Brammell in Warrington, his birth year of 1811 is based on a given age of 30. However, in the 1841 Census a policy of rounding down ages was in place. As such people aged:
15-19 were recorded as 15; 20-24 were recorded as 20; 25-29 were recorded as 25; 30-34 were recorded as 30; 35-39 were recorded as 35, and so on. So William's birth year could have been between 1807 and 1811.

Dickiesam

Good info Dickiesam

Have you
William spelt as Bramhill who married Ann Pickavance in Huyton
1790?

Must be related somewhere??


Tina

Hi DickieSam,
Many thanks for your reply.
Yes, I had seen all the varied possible ages and have searched records at Huyton for 10 years either side of 1806 without luck. I'm pretty sure 1806 is right though as it ties in with grave details (that's if his son, the owner of the grave had it right!)

I intend visiting the church though as they still hold the register and for a fee will allow it to be looked at. Since several years of records have been lost at the records office and 1806 is missed from the BT's thats my best bet. I'll have to go in my next hols now though.

Also, because there are twins in the family its possible (maybe remotely) any entry for twins (if William was a twin) could have missed the second child's name in transcription for the BT's.

Keep the advice coming - I need all I can get!

Hi Tina,

Thanks to you also.

I'm aware of the optional spellings and there were lots of them in Huyton and Liverpool area. I think there's possibly around 7 or more families William may fit into. Plus they all seem to use very similar names so it could be any of them and they're probably all linked.

I've not found a link to William and Ann but again they are names common to my line so could well be linked. If I could just find a birth/christening record for my William - hey ho.
Thanks again
Regards
Donna

Hi Donna,

I intend visiting the church though as they still hold the register and for a fee will allow it to be looked at.

Just a tip for when you do visit. It's unlikely you would be allowed to photocopy any 'interesting' entries (even if a copier was available) so be sure to have a digital camera with you and take several shots of each page from slightly different angles, with and without flash. The angle of 'background' light can do strange things to the image taken by the average digital camera.
Good luck,
Dickiesam

Hi DickieSam,

Good idea and good advice. Thanks for that.
Can't go till October now though!
Regards
Donna

I've replied to Donna privately. I have a lot of information on my site at www.bramhill.net.

There would appear to be two distinct families, as Brian Bramhall of Warrington and I have had DNA tests, and we are NOT related.

I do have DNA connections to Bramels and Brimhalls in the US.

Regards

Will